Alexx Ekubo, Nollywood Actor Known for Charm and Versatility, Dies at 39
The actor, beloved for roles across more than a hundred films and one of the most recognized faces in contemporary African cinema, had been battling kidney cancer.
Alexx Ekubo, one of Nollywood’s most recognizable leading men, died Tuesday after complications from kidney cancer. He was 39.
He had been rushed to the hospital on Monday and passed away on Tuesday afternoon after spending hours on life support. Family, friends, and fans of the actor are deeply devastated by the loss.
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His passing has left a void in the Nollywood industry, where he was known for his remarkable performances in several blockbuster films.
Rumors that Ekubo was suffering from serious health issues had begun circulating in May 2025, following months of unexplained absence from social media. A check confirmed that his last public post dated to December 30, 2024. For an actor who had built one of Nollywood’s most engaged online followings, the silence was conspicuous and, in retrospect, heartbreaking.
Born Alex Ekubo-Okwaraeke on April 10, 1986, Ekubo was a native of Arochukwu, Abia State, in southeastern Nigeria, though his upbringing was anything but rooted in one place. He was born in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, to Jane Ekubo, a fashion designer and businesswoman, and Mazi Alex Ekubo, a petroleum marketer.
His father’s career meant the family moved frequently, and Ekubo grew up across several Nigerian cities, becoming fluent in Igbo, Hausa, and English along the way. He attended Federal Government College Daura in Katsina State before proceeding to the University of Calabar, where he studied law. He later added a diploma in Mass Communication from Calabar Polytechnic to a résumé that, even before he set foot on a film set, was building in several directions at once.
It was modeling that gave him his first platform. Tall, striking, and effortlessly photogenic, he established himself in fashion and commercials before the pull of Nollywood proved irresistible. He made his acting debut in 2005 with a minor role in Sinners in the House, directed by Lancelot Oduwa Imasuen. The role was small, the kind that most people would not have noticed. Ekubo noticed everything. He spent the following years studying the industry, building his range, and waiting for the role that would make people remember his name.
He gained widespread attention after securing the first runner-up position at the 2010 Mr. Nigeria competition, which gave him the platform to launch his mainstream movie career in Nollywood. His breakout performance came with Ladies Men, followed by his award-winning role in Weekend Getaway, which earned him Best Supporting Actor at the 2013 Best of Nollywood Awards. That win announced him as something more than a handsome face on a poster. It announced him as an actor.
What followed was one of the more quietly impressive careers in modern African cinema. With over a hundred film credits, Ekubo worked with leading Nollywood filmmakers and became increasingly recognized as a cultural bridge between African and diaspora cinema.
His titles read like a survey of the industry’s most ambitious output across two decades: Bling Lagosians, Ayinla, Champagne, True Citizens, Lagos Cougars, Torment, Accidental Affair, and Devil in Agbada, among many others. On television, he played JJ in AY’s Crib for two years and appeared in the long-running soap opera Tinsel, a show that shaped the viewing habits of a generation of Nigerian audiences.
He also appeared, memorably, in a context that had nothing to do with film. He starred in Yemi Alade’s hit music video Johnny, which has accumulated over 135 million views on YouTube and stands as one of the most-watched music videos ever produced in Africa.
The role gave him a nickname, “Johnny,” that followed him everywhere, proof that in Nigeria’s entertainment landscape, the line between music and film has always been more suggestion than boundary.
In 2020, he was named one of the Most Influential People of African Descent under 40 by the United Nations, for his contributions to entertainment and social development across the continent. He was also a brand ambassador for Globacom, one of Nigeria’s largest telecommunications companies, and was known for his philanthropic efforts, participating in charitable campaigns and using his platform to raise awareness for social issues.
Those who worked with him have consistently described a man whose warmth off-screen matched his charisma on-screen. He was frequently seen alongside industry colleagues, including Ini Edo, Rita Dominic, Ramsey Nouah, and Uti Nwachukwu, and his relationships within the industry were a testament to a career built as much on character as on craft. He called his devoted female fanbase the “AlexEkubo Wives Association,” a joke that contained within it genuine affection and the kind of self-aware humor that made him difficult not to like.
His personal life attracted public attention in May 2021, when he and his then-fiancée, Fancy Acholonu, announced their engagement and scheduled both a traditional wedding in Imo State and a white wedding in Lagos. The relationship ended before either ceremony took place, and the breakup, which both parties later addressed separately and with measured candor, was one of the more scrutinized personal stories in Nollywood that year. He remained unmarried at the time of his death.
He is survived by his mother, Jane Ekubo; his sisters, Amarachi Ekubo and Chioma Ekubo; and his brother, Michael Ekubo. Formal funeral arrangements had not been announced as of Tuesday evening.
Alexx Ekubo was 39 years old. Nollywood, which has watched him grow from a nervous debutant in 2005 to one of its most dependable leading men, will not easily fill the space he leaves behind.
